Saving Her
by LeeOfHermes0330
Summary: "'Scorp, I'm the one who's actually there. I'm the one saving her." When Albus Potter stopped his best friend's cousin from killing herself, he didn't know he'd be saving her from both herself and everyone else. He really didn't know he'd fall in love. Trigger Warning: contains depression, attempted suicide, self-harm, implications of rape, etc. T for Trigger. Multi-chap.
1. Chapter 1

**So, here's a multi-chap fic based on my Next Gen OC Aisling Finnegan. I also wrote a short little one shot about her, called 'The Butterfly Effect' so check that out if you want. I might write more one shots about her too if this and that get good feedback, so yeah. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, or any related names, places, characters, etc. **

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**Chapter 1**

She sat at the top of the Astronomy Tower, staring at the sky. Sitting on the ground beside her was her wand, which she had dropped carelessly – she wouldn't need it soon, anyway. Finally, she could no longer gaze the stars, even though she knew this would be the last time she ever could.

She shakily bent over the parchment in her lap, writing a letter to her cousin. He was the only one she cared enough to write to, her only friend. Hot tears rolled down her freckled cheeks, as she sealed the letter, tying it to the leg of a patiently waiting school owl. "Take this to Scorpius Malfoy," she said, tying the knot tightly. "Sixth year, Slytherin house." The owl flew off, headed to the owl hatch that led to the Slytherin Common Room. She could have left the letter there, or with her things, but a small part of her wanted Scorpius to come running in and stop her.

She looked down at the red lines covering her arms, fresh cuts from a blade that she had thrown over the wall. She slid her sleeve over her arm, before stepping to the edge of the tower, sliding up so that she was sitting on the wall. The tears, which had been slowly, quietly falling, increased to loud, racking sobs. She huddled on the wall, staring at the ground. Finally, she swung herself around, until her feet were hanging in the air.

"Goodbye," she whispered, sliding closer to the edge. Just as she was about to shove herself over the side, someone's arm wrapped around her waist, yanking her back to the inside of the tower.

She wrapped her arms around her savior's neck, crying into his – because it was definitely a male – chest. He ran his fingers through her hair.

"Merlin, Finnegan," he breathed, "Don't you dare do that again." She recognized the voice as that of Albus Potter, her cousin's best friend.

"Potter," she said, pulling away and wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her sweater. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to the dorms, when I saw an owl flying from up here," he replied, shaking a little, "I know it had Scorp's name on it, but I intercepted it, and sent the owl back so it didn't have to fly there. I didn't read it but I knew where it was coming from, so I decided to stop by." He paused, looking at the girl in front of him. "I'm glad I did."

Albus ran a hand through his already messy black hair, and examined her. Aisling Finnegan was tall and thin, with fairly long brown hair. Her green eyes peered at him through black glasses, though they were fogged up from her tears. She was shivering, even though it was fairly warm, and she was wearing a school sweater and a pair of skinny jeans. Albus picked up her wand, and handed it over.

"Come on," he said, taking her hand, "You need something to eat."

Aisling yanked her hand away. "I don't need to eat anything," she announced, walking backwards toward the wall, "I need to finish what I started." She was calm, almost too calm, but just slightly shaky. Just enough for Albus to know that she wasn't entirely ready to go yet. Albus shook his head, walked over slowly, and picked her up bridal style. She squealed, but wrapped her arms around his neck to keep from falling.

"You're really light, you know that?" he whispered as he walked down the stairs. It was fairly late, but not yet curfew, so they earned a few odd glances from other students. When they say Albus, however, the students would roll their eyes, and keep walking – strange things always seemed to follow him around.

"No I didn't," Aisling replied, removing her arms from his neck to cross them indignantly. She knew better than to try to fight it – Albus was a beater (which had surprised everyone in the Wizarding world) on the Slytherin team (which was even more shocking), and one of very few people who could beat Scorpius in an arm wrestle. "Considering the fact that no one has carried me since I was, maybe seven," she finished.

"Well you are," Albus told her, smiling a little, "Possibly lighter than Lils and she's super skinny." Aisling crossed her arms, and let out a little "humph" sound, but otherwise didn't respond.

In a few moments, the two of them reached the painting of a fruit basket that concealed the entrance to the kitchens. "Erm, Finnegan," Albus said cautiously. Aisling looked up, frowning at the boy above her.

"What is it Potter?" she asked, glancing a bit behind her. There were the barrels that marked the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room. If she could only get free from his arms, she could retreat to her dorm, it was only a few steps and a few knocks away…

"Could you tickle the pear for me?" he asked her, shaking her from all thoughts of escape. She fluttered her eyelashes in the ridiculous way she had seen her friend Rosie do many times.

"Could you put me down?" she asked. Albus shook his head.

"Nope," he announced. She sighed, and reached up, tickling the oddly shaped green fruit. The portrait swung open, and Albus stepped through. They were soon surrounded by House Elves, one of whom hurried off to retireve food for the two of them, and the rest rushed off to continue their duties, and prepare Aisling and Albus a place to sit. It wasn't until he had been ushered a circle of chairs in front of a fire place, that he set her down.

"So…" he started awkwardly, "Why did you, you know…"

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**So, yeah. Please review?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A reupload, since last time had some serious issues, like omgs. So so sorry. Also, I'm sitting at my dad's house at the pool, and apparently Trevor says hi. So yeah, that happened.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I wish.**

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Chapter Two

"Try to kill myself," she finished, and looked away. Aisling shrugged letting her hair swing in front of her face. "I just can't take it anymore."

Albus frowned.

"Can't take what?" he asked. Aisling shrugged again.

"Family problems, friend problems, bullies," she sighed, "Everything."

"But don't you think people would be sad if you left? Your parents? Your brothers? Scorpius?" Albus asked. He refrained from adding 'me' at the end. Being friends with Scorpius meant you were required to be around Aisling, at the very least when you went to his house over break – she was almost always there. Though the two weren't friends, Albus had grown quite fond of Aisling's sarcastic comments, and mischievous grins. Plus, her Irish accent was oddly adorable.

"They'd get over it," she said. Albus frowned even more deeply. She took this whole thing in stride, and talked about it so casually. It was scaring him.

Aisling went to get up, claiming she was tired, but Albus grabbed her arm. "Ow!" she squealed, yanking it to her chest.

"What's wrong? I didn't mean to hurt you," he said worriedly. Aisling looked confused for a moment, before her eyes widened. She glanced down at her sweater covered arm.

"Is Kitty here?" she asked kindly, turning to the nearest House Elf. The little elf nodded.

"Yes, miss, Kitty is here," she said, "Who is Duffer to tell Kitty wants her?" Albus chuckled a little at the elf's name, but stopped when Aisling shot him a glare.

"Tell Kitty it's," Aisling bit her lip before continuing, "Tell Kitty it's Missy Ais." Duffer smiled widely, and hurried off into the kitchens.

"Missy Ais?" Albus questioned. Aisling waved him off, and stayed turned away. Soon enough, an extremely tiny house elf appeared. She had big brown eyes, and pretty, leaf-like ears. She was wearing a denim child's dress, with a patch of the Hogwarts crest on the front pocket.

"Missy Ais!" cried the little elf, "Kitty had missed you! What can Kitty do for you today?" Aisling smiled and knelt to be the same level as Kitty.

"Can you get me some bandages? And some medicine, the kind you put on scratches?" she asked. The house elf nodded happily. Before she left, she paused.

"How are Masters Shaymie, Scorpy, Col, and Sean?" Aisling smiled, mumbled "They're good," and motioned for her to go. Kitty nodded happily, and hurried to the supply closet in the kitchens. Tears slid out of her eyes, but she wiped them away furiously as Kitty came back.

"Did Missy Ais do it again?" asked Kitty upon returning. Ais sighed, and nodded, and the elf took her hand, gently beginning to roll up the sleeve.

"Do what again?" asked Albus, making both of them jump. "Sorry," he added, "I guess I should wait, huh?" Kitty gasped, and bowed to Albus, making his ears turn a bright red, and the blush spread down his neck.

"You are Albus Potter," she said looking awed, "Winky told Kitty much about you. You are friend to elves, and to Missy Ais and Master Scorpy. Son of Harry Potter!" She looked so happy that Aisling giggled, and Albus chuckled.

"Please, call me Al," he said, and Kitty's large eyes widened even more. He wasn't sure how this elf knew Aisling and Scorpius, but she was probably the sweetest and most adorable elf he had ever seen. She was definitely better than Kreacher at any rate. (Though his family's old elf wasn't _that_ bad.)

Kitty turned back to Aisling, and continued rolling up her sleeve. Soon, her whole arm was exposed, showing off several bright red cuts running half way up her forearm. Kitty frowned, and scolded Aisling a little, before setting to work to clean them and wrap them up.

Soon, Aisling was pulling her sleeves back down, dismissing the elf, and settled back into the chair next to Albus.

"You should see Madame Pomfrey," Al said, nodding towards her arms. Aisling frowned.

"I don't need a healer," she said, holding her arms close to her chest.

"Yes, you do," Al said, he turned to the girl next to him. Ailing looked away, but Al lifted her face towards him. "Finnegan, you need more than a healer. You need help. You're...you're..." He seemed to be searching for a word. Ailing looked away again, staring at the fireplace.

"Say it," she mumbled. "I'm crazy. A demon. Inhuman." Albus frowned, shaking his head. His black hair landed messily, which was not helped by his hand which soon ran through it anxiously.

"You're not crazy, you're just...what's that muggle song..." Aisling giggled a little.

"I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell," she muttered. Albus looked at her, surprise evident on his face. "What?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, "Me dad's a half-blood. I know muggle stuff." Albus shrugged.

"I didn't know-"

"Anyone related to Scorp would know muggle music? Yeah, he's woefully lacking there." Aisling glanced at a clock on the wall and stifled a gasp when she saw the time.

"I need to get to the dorm before someone Em and Will start looking for me," she started to stand, then turned towards Al, green eyes wide. "Promise you won't tell anyone?" It took Al a moment to realize what she meant.

"Scorpius needs to-"

"No," Ais cut him off, "Scorpius doesn't need to know anything. Promise me, Potter." Albus didn't want to promise her, but when he locked eyes with her, he had to. She looked so vulnerable, so insecure, and he, for whatever reason, wanted to protect her as best he could. He nodded.

"I promise Aisling," he said. She nodded, smiled, and turned away. Albus glanced back to the fireplace, and by the time he looked up again, Aisling was already gone, disappeared out the door to the kitchens, and to the Hufflepuff common room.

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**Here's hoping this went up right. X3 Sorry again, ya'll. Love you, please review? **

**Lee**


	3. Chapter 3

**So here's chapter three, I'm sorry it's been so long. Agh. I actually had this written for a while, so I really have no excuse whatsoever. Wait. Does starting school again count? Cause I think that it should; AP classes are so hard man.**

**Warning: Implications of rape**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything familiar. J.K. Rowling does. **

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_A tall, Slytherin, boy cornered a small Gryffindor girl in the hallway. The little girl cowered against the wall, as the boy, Harold Zabani, called her names. A lone Hufflepuff girl turned the corner. When she saw Zabani, she ducked her head, having been the victim of his abuse a few times until her cousin told him to stop. However, she paused, remembering how she felt when she was being messed with._

"_Zabani," she called, turning towards him. The boy, turned, and laughed when he caught sight of the Hufflepuff nearing him._

"_What do you want, Finnegan?" he asked, looking down on the second year. She swallowed hard, before squaring her shoulders._

"_Leave her alone," she demanded, pointing to the Gryffindor, "She's a first year, and she didn't do anything to you." Zabani rolled his eyes, and smirked. He knew this girl, Aisling Finnegan. Her cousin was Scorpius Malfoy, same year as her, but a hell of a lot more intimidating. He felt obliged to listen to Malfoy, as he was a good family friend. Aisling however? Not so much. Still, he decided to humor her._

"_Why do you care, Finnegan?" he asked, crossing his arms, and turning away. The Hufflepuff raised her eyebrows, but didn't reply. He took a menacing step forwards, but she refused to back down. Instead, she stood taller, gazing up into his eyes and crossing her skinny arms. "What are you gonna do about it?" Aisling shrugged._

"_Professor Longbottom adores me," she said slowly, almost thoughtfully, "Family friend, ya know? I'm sure I could get you in loads of trouble." Zabani raised his eyebrows. The Herbology professor could be scary when he wanted to be, and Zabani did not want to get on the wrong side of him._

"_You'll be sorry, Finnegan," he promised. He turned to the still-cowering girl. "Go," he commanded. She nodded, picking up her dropped bag, and dashed away disappearing around the corner._

_Zabani left Aisling standing there, shaking slightly. She wasn't sure why she had done that. She certainly wasn't brave or anything. If she thought about it, she would suppose it was the right thing to do, but she didn't think too hard._

"_You thought you could hide from me!" laughed Zabani, gripping a now fourteen-year-old Aisling's arm tightly. "That's cute, Finnegan. Real cute." He paused a moment, sneering down into her face. She was shaking, her arm was throbbing where he held her. The bruises from lunch, when he cornered her in the library and beat her down with two of his cronies, sent stabs of pain through her body as Zabani dragged her into an empty classroom._

"_You know, you're pretty hot, for a fourth year," he sneered, putting his face so close to hers that she could feel his breath. "I would do you." She whimpered, struggling to get away._

"_Let me go," she whispered, "Please, I'm sorry." Zabani laughed, and swung her further into the room. She went flying into a table, and crumbled next to it, hitting her side hard enough to leave a massive bruise._

_Zabani stalked across the room, dragging her up, and shoving her back roughly against the table. "I'm going to punish you for that," he said, grinning cruelly. He latched his lips onto hers, but she shoved him away, wiping her mouth with the hand that wasn't pinned between her body and the table. He frowned._

"_How dare you," he said, and gripped her wrist. He shoved his mouth roughly onto hers, and tugged a shoelace out of his pocket. He pulled away and tied her wrists together tightly behind her back, before beginning to slide his hands into her skirt._

"_Please no," she gasped, "I'm sorry, I'll never fight back again," she begged, but he ignored her, deftly unbuttoning the shirt of her uniform and pressing her into the table._

Aisling woke up in a cold sweat. She looked around the dormitory, surprised to see that she was the only one awake. Usually, Emily woke her up in the mornings. After a long moment of shivering in the dark, and reminding herself that Harold Zabani had graduated the previous year, and that she had nothing to worry about, she rolled out of bed, and walked to her trunk.

She tugged out her uniform, the same white button-down, gray skirt, and house robes as every other female student at Hogwarts and dressed quickly. After she brushed her hair, she gathered the schoolbag next to her bed, and began to make her way to the Dining Hall. Her yellow and black striped tie hung loose around her neck, as she was rubbish at tying them, and normally made Emily or Scorpius do it for her.

"Where do you think you're going?" said a voice as she walked past an alcove on her way towards the staircase. Aisling jumped a foot into the air, before she recognized the speaker as Albus.

"Um, breakfast?" she said, raising an eyebrow, "And then I was thinking class might be a good thing." Albus started laughing, leaving Aisling to stare at him, perplexed.

"It's nearly lunch," he remarked, and Aisling's eyes widened. He fell into step beside her as she continued upstairs, a half-formed plan about heading to the Room of Requirement for the remainder of the day filling her mind. "Are you um, feeling any better?" he asked. Aisling shrugged.

"I told Scorpius that you aren't feeling well," he said a few moments later. She nodded in appreciation and kept walking.

"Do-"

"Aren't you supposed to be in class, Potter?" she snapped, crossing her arms. "Because, if I remember correctly, you do not have a single free lesson before lunch, and you said it was nearly lunch, implying that class is still going on."

Albus turned red, and looked down biting his lip. "Skiving Snackbox," he admitted, "I was worried about you. I've used a Nosebleed Nougat and a Puking Pastille already to come and check on you, but obviously I have no idea where your common room is, or how to get into it, so it wasn't a very well thought-out plan, was it?"

Aisling sighed, and looked up into Albus' green eyes. "I'm okay," she lied, though her mind played images from her dream – her memory, really. Albus frowned.

"You do the same thing as him," he mumbled. Aisling raised an eyebrow.

"I do what like who?" she asked, crossing her arms, and walking backwards up the stairs.

"You and Scorpius both squint a little and tilt your heads when you're lying," he said, mimicking the action. Aisling smiled a bit, as Albus looked ridiculous.

"I do not," she said, even as her eyes squinted and her head tilted slightly to the right. "Oh for the love of Merlin, you've got to be joking me," she added as she realized what she was doing. Albus chuckled.

"Good liar, you are, Ais," he laughed. "How else are you like Scorp?" She shrugged, tugging on the hem of her skirt.

The two continued to talk on their way up to the Astronomy tower – though neither one realized where they were headed, exactly. Albus tried to get Aisling to forget about how horrid she felt about herself, and Aisling vaguely remembering the last time she had walked the halls alone with a boy who was not her cousin.

"_Shut your mouth, whore. I own you know," _her mind whispered, quoting Zabani on one of those horrible nights, when the punishments got so much worse. Her smile, which Albus had successfully gotten to appear, slid from her face; her laugh faltered and her breath caught.

"What's wrong?" Albus asked. Aisling frowned.

"He's not Zabani," she whispered, pressing herself backwards against the wall. Albus stood by, stunned and confused. What happened? Why was she acting like this all of a sudden?

"_All boys are like Zabani,"_ she reminded herself, "_They only want one thing, and they don't mind using force to get it. They like hurting people. All boys are like Zabani. All boys except Scorp."_

It took her a moment to realize Al was staring at her, that the classes had let out, and that Scorpius was now standing beside him. It took her a moment to realize that she was no longer in the hallway, but in Room of Requirement.

"Ais, are you okay?" Scorpius asked. She sent a faked smile to her cousin.

"I'm fine Scor," she said, "I'm always fine."

_That's a lie, _she thought to herself, _I'm not fine at all._


End file.
